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The Times-Picayune confirms there's "little doubt" Brandin Cooks will be the top target in the Saints' passing game.

Cooks, who was fully healthy all offseason, watched Jimmy Graham and Kenny Stills get traded away. Beyond lumbering Marques Colston and satellite back C.J. Spiller, Drew Brees is going to struggle to find reliable targets. Cooks, who was on pace to catch 85 balls as a rookie last year when he got injured, is a candidate for 100 receptions this time around. Jul 21 - 9:18 AM

"He’s in his second year with a lot more knowledge of what we’re doing," Coach Sean Payton said. "That allows [him] to play faster. He’s progressed well." The Saints are expected to throw less as they move to a run-balanced offense, but Cooks projects for high-volume targets as Drew Brees’s top option. Cooks is the No. 16 wideout in our early 2015 rankings. Jul 3 - 4:57 PM

Cooks missed the second half of his rookie season with a thumb injury. Since then, he's been working nonstop and seems to have a much better grasp of the Saints' offense. "I’m definitely ahead of where I was last year mentally, knowing my plays and just having that true confidence when I’m running around," said Cooks. "Because taking the thinking out of it, some of that thinking I was doing last year can really slow you down." Cooks is New Orleans' unquestioned No. 1 following the departures of Jimmy Graham and Kenny Stills. Jun 8 - 9:27 AM

The offseason movement has broken nicely for Cooks, as Kenny Stills and Jimmy Graham were both traded away and not replaced. Cooks, who was on pace for 85 catches, 997 total yards and more than six touchdowns before going down with a thumb injury last year, will be counted on for even more this year. He's locked in as the No. 1 target and still has tons of room for improvement as he enters his age-22 season. May 5 - 11:49 AM